


Dust to Dust

by winters_prince



Category: Undertale
Genre: Alternate Timelines, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, Crossing Timelines, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Other, Pain, death mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-20
Updated: 2015-10-20
Packaged: 2018-04-27 08:21:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5041042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/winters_prince/pseuds/winters_prince
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It doesn't matter how many times it takes.  It doesn't matter how many times he dies just to wake back up again.  Papyrus will never stop believing in Frisk.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dust to Dust

It always happened the same way. Never at the same time, or in the same place; sometimes he would be just sitting down to answer a call from the human, sometime’s he would be setting his traps up once again in the forest.

Sometimes he would be dead.

It was always the same sensation. He would hear a rushing sound; he would feel it in his ears, too, if he had any. If he had any skin, he would feel a sensation like a thousand gripping fingers wrapping around him and yanking him back, putting him back together if they needed to, putting him right where he was supposed to be. He might shout, fight the feeling and the sound, but that would never change it.

It would never change the fact that his feet always hit the ground, and a hard crunch told him he’d landed in snow. It wouldn’t change his confusion when he found himself back in the woods, earlier that day. It wouldn’t change any of it.

But it wouldn’t change him. He always remembered. It had been so many times now; he’d lost count after the first twenty-eight.

The first few times he’d been astounded; he thought maybe something had gone wrong, and he needed to do something different. One time he even ran back home and changed into a different pair of shoes, polished his skull, and set back out, only to see he had completely missed meeting the human. And then there was the rush, and he was back.

Soon enough, he hoped this would all stop; there was nothing that could best him, of course, and so this strange loop would have to simply succumb to his greatness at some point.

It hadn’t yet, however.

It was never the same day; sometimes he would meet the human and introduce him to his wonderful inventions, and the human was delighted. He’d even get a few laughs from them in some instances. There would be times that he invited the human to his home, and gave them some laughs and his undying friendship; a gift to top all gifts! He would always hope that he had done enough, been enough, but it hadn’t changed yet, although that didn’t stop him from trying.

Other times, however.

Other times.

There were times he would meet the human and there was no warmth to them, no gentle smile to greet him. There were times he met the human and they tore through everything; his traps, the puzzles, the town.

There were times when he would meet the human and they would tear through him, and the darkness that closed over him seemed infinite. Yet, like everything else lately, it was not. Before he knew it, there would be a rush, then a crunch, and then his proud laugh would meet the air once again. Another chance given to make it better.

This was one of those times.

The human approached him at the pass, their face as cold as the air. “HALT, HUMAN!” he prompted, as he had time and time before. Then came the speech. He knew it by heart, by now. Well, by skull. They were words he always spoke genuinely, for even after resets upon resets upon resets, he still believed them. “I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL GLADLY BE YOUR FRIEND AND TUTOR!” he bellowed at the child. “ANYONE CAN BE A GREAT PERSON IF THEY TRY!” When he’d said his peace, he braced himself. He knew what was coming.

Despite his better judgement, he tried, still, to talk the human down. To make him see the error of his ways. Blow after blow rattled his bones, and yet he kept trying. For even through all the times they met-even after all the beatings, all of the wordless deaths, all of the fear he felt-he still believed in the human, no, Frisk. Frisk was their name. Frisk was their friend.

“YOU CAN BE GOOD, I KNOW IT”, he said, as thick wood clashed with his fibula.

“LET ME HELP YOU!” he pleaded, as the stick splintered on his ribs.

“ALLOW THE GREAT PAPYRUS TO BRING YOU TO A BETTER LIFE!” he finally shouted, closing his eyes, knowing what would come. He would be dust, and then he would see the blackness, then the rush would strike, and he’d be back. Ready to go again, because he believed in Frisk, and he knew what they could do.

Except the rush didn’t come.

None of it did.

Instead, a warmth wrapped around his bruised bones, and he could feel shuddering, shaking, emanating from the warmth.

Slowly, he opened his eyes, and tilted his head downward.

The human had dropped their weapon, coated in a layer of dust thicker than the one on their hands, and had embraced Papyrus. Their head barely made it to the bottom of his ribs; they had rested their forehead on his sternum, and were letting out big, heavy sobs, fat tears rolling down their cheeks. Their cries were wordless, and yet they said more than enough for Papyrus to understand.

Papyrus slid down, beckoning them and telling them that it was alright, that they were alright. He hugged the human back, tears staining his guard armour, but it didn’t matter. Papyrus forgave them, as he always would. He wouldn’t know when, or even if, he would feel the rush again, but for now, his friend Frisk had returned. He would do anything to keep them safe, even if Frisk came back again and again.

With his arms around his friend, and his voice, quiet and soft for the first time in his life, forgiving them, there was only one thing left for him to do.

* SPARE

**Author's Note:**

> Based on an idea that Papyrus remembers the repeating timelines like Sans does, but he never stops caring for and believing in Frisk! Please comment if you like it :)


End file.
